A Blessed New Year to All

Every good gift comes from the Father of light.
May He grant you His grace and every blessing,
and keep you safe throughout the coming year.

May He grant you unwavering faith,
constant hope, and love that endures to the end.

May He order your days and work in His peace,
hear your every prayer,
and lead you to everlasting life and joy.

May almighty God bless you,
the Father, and the Son, + and the Holy Spirit.

Movie Night: Fireproof

I finally saw the movie Fireproof via Netflix the other night, and it was a movie I'd watch twice. Although the acting is a little stilted at times, the writing is good, and the message of how God turns our hearts and brings peace is delivered in a compelling, relevant, and believable(non-saccharine) way. I'm glad I finally saw this movie. Even my husband liked it, and he is usually not a love-drama movie watching kind of guy.

Amazon Summary:
"Lt. Caleb Holt lives by the old firefighter's adage: Never leave your partner behind. Inside burning buildings, it's his natural instinct. In the cooling embers of his marriage, it's another story. After a decade of marriage, Caleb and Catherine Holt have drifted so far apart that they are ready to move on without each other. Yet as they prepare to enter divorce proceedings, Caleb's dad asks his son to try an experiment: The Love Dare. While hoping The Love Dare has nothing to do with his parents' new found faith, Caleb commits to the challenge. But can he attempt to love his wife while avoiding God's love for him? Will he be able to demonstrate love over and over again to a person that's no longer receptive to his love? Or is this just another marriage destined to go up in smoke?"

Although I haven't seen this for myself, my husband told me he browsed through The Love Dare, the book used in the movie, at a Christian book(Family Christian, I think) store. I found it at Amazon, The Love Dare by Stephen Kendrick and there is a marriage kit based on the movie's message, Fireproof Your Marriage Couple's Kit  From Amazon: "Fireproof Your Marriage includes these six sessions: 1.) He Said/She Said: appreciating the God-designed differences between men and women. 2.) He First Loved Us: God's love for you and how it enables you to love others. 3.) Love for a Lifetime: marriage as a lifelong covenant. 4.) Breaking Free: freeing yourself from temptations that can destroy a marriage. 5.) Forgiveness: offering and receiving forgiveness. 6.) A Better Way of Loving: unconditional love."

All have numerous good reviews at Amazon.

Feast of the Holy Innocents/Childermas

Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, "Rise, take the Child and His mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there till I tell you: for Herod is about to search for the Child, to destroy Him." And he rose and took the Child and His mother by night, and departed to Egypt, and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet, "Out of Egypt have I called My Son."

Then Herod, when he saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, was in a furious rage, and he sent and killed all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that region who were two years old or under, according to the time which he had ascertained from the wise men. Then was fulfilled what was spoken by the prophet Jeremiah:

"A voice was heard in Ramah, wailing and loud lamentation: Rachel weeping for her children; she refused to be consoled because they were no more." Matthew 2:13-18

Children's Blessing:

Make a sign the cross on the child's forehead with the right thumb dipped in holy water and say:

May God bless you, and may He be the Guardian of your heart and mind — the Father, + Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.

Recipes with Oranges(the fruit)

My sweet neighbor brought us a large bag of oranges the other day, so I'm trying to use them up before they go bad. I am the only one in the family who will eat them either skinned or as a juice. I'm trying this recipe today for the children. They love sweet breads, but I need to stay away from them(fattening!).

From Allrecipes.com: Orange Loaf:

Ingredients

* 1/2 cup margarine
* 1 cup white sugar
* 2 eggs
* 1 tablespoon grated orange zest
* 1/2 cup fresh orange juice
* 2 cups all-purpose flour
* 2 teaspoons baking powder
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
* 1/2 cup orange juice
* 1/4 cup white sugar

Read the rest here.

(Image for allrecipes.com)

A few other recipes I'd like to try:

Bee Lian's Rich Orange Cake

Orange Braised Bourbon Chicken

Orange Chicken

Pepparkakor II(Swedish cookie)

Feast of the Holy Family

Father, help us to live as the Holy Family, united in respect and love. Bring us to the joy and peace of your eternal home. Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Geography and Map Skills with Picture Flashcards

I purchased some National Geographic world picture flashcards years ago for around a dollar at a closeout sale. I'm just now using them, and they have come in handy this year for our social studies - Rod & Staff's Understanding Latin America. I've grouped all the South American cards together, and on Monday my son will read each card and locate the places on the map at left.

The cards show a picture of the location on one side, and history and statistics on the other. If you can find these, they are well worth the cost.

I haven't tried this service yet, but it's a free Geography flashcard online program. Create your own, or view existing sets.

Chicken Quarters in a Pot

Bottom's Up! Only .79 cents a pound this week at Save-A-Lot.

Result: About five pounds of shredded chicken from a five pound bag, and half a stock pot of chicken stock. I even cracked a few of the bones for the marrow. This makes for a healthful stock. Boiling the chicken quarters is the best way for me to get every last shred of meat off these leg quarters, not to mention I can skim off the artery clogging skin and fat..

Chicken or turkey stock recipe. 

After seeing this recipe for bone stock, I also made a separate stock from the leftover bones.

Mother Angelica's Christmas Audio for Young Children

From 2001, an hour of children's Christmas teachings. This was very cute with questions about Jesus from young children and answers from Mother Angelica, Mother Angelica Live(EWTN).

Click here.

More in archives here.

Peace and Joy!

Peace and Joy to all! May peace, love and joy reside in your heart. Cast aside all your troubles, and find that peaceful place where you can bask in God's love. Find that quiet corner in the church for reflection. Do this for yourself; God is calling you to feel this peace and joy right down to the depth of your soul. Lent will be here soon enough; now is the time for celebration, a vacation from worry and fear if only for one day, one hour, one minute - do it.

We are all worthy of His love and mercy. God bless you, especially those struggling financially, physically, and/or emotionally through the Christmas season. Where there is love, there is hope.




Picture of the Advent Wreath Sacred Hearts Church, Punahou by Esther. Just pretend they are all lit. This Hawaiian advent wreath was so beautiful I couldn't resist.


Bumped up from last year.

Christ Lived Each of Our lives

A reflection on the Incarnation for the eve of Christmas Eve:

We know what the Incarnation means to us, that God the Son, by becoming human, caught up our human nature into his, made each one of us one with him. He took our human nature for is own and gave us his. He experienced everything that we do, except sin, and he even took upon himself the guilt and punishment of sin.

He made himself subject to our limitations: to discomfort, poverty, hunger and thirst and pain. He knew fear, temptation and failure. He suffered loneliness, betrayal, unrequited love, utter desolation of spirit, the sense of despair and death. He suffered all these things, and all the secret, incommunicable things known to each individual, which can never be told; and he overcame them all.

Christ lived each of our lives. He has faced all our fears, suffered all our griefs, overcome all our temptations, labored in all of our labors, loved in all of our loves, died all our deaths.

He took our humanity, just as it is, with all its wretchedness and ugliness, and gave it back to us just as his humanity is: transfigured by the beauty of his living, filled full of his joy. So that no matter what suffering we meet, we can meet it with the whole power of the love that has overcome the world.

God intimately and silently shares all of our secrets, no matter how hidden we may keep them from other people. God knows our hidden selves, and still God is pleased to be with us. God rejoices in our triumphs and shares the pain of our unspoken sorrows - all in complete and undisturbed solidarity with us...

God has chosen to be one of us. Rejoice in your humanity! Celebrate your individuality! Know that God treasures you.

O God who comes to us in Advent, help us to recognize our humanity as a gift that, with Jesus, we share with you.

- A Child in Winter with Caryll Houselander, edited by Thomas Hoffman, pages 43-45

I really enjoy Caryll Houselander's writings, so when I saw this at Concord Pastor's blog, I knew I had to share it.

Have Yourself a Merry Christmas

Shared by my blog friend, Myrnie:


Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas from Myrnie Twin on Vimeo.

Recipe: Honey Roasted Red Potatoes

We had a sale locally on potatoes and onions around Thanksgiving time, and I bought quite a few. I've been looking for recipes to use them up. I tried this recipe tonight for a potato side and it was delicious - sweet and salty at the same time. I ran out of honey so used maple syrup. I had to add water to the dish as it dried down as it cooked, also I used much more sauce ingredients than mentioned. Make sure to read all the comments at the link for variations on this recipe.

Honey Roasted Red Potatoes recipe.

Children's Christmas Poem

Christmas Bells

I heard the bells on Christmas Day
Their old familiar carols play,

And wild and sweet
The words repeat

Of peace on earth, good will to men.

And thought how, as the day had come,
The belfries of all Christendom

Had rolled along
The unbroken song

Of peace on earth, good will to men.

Till, ringing, singing on its way,
The world revolved from night to day

A voice, a chime,
A chant sublime

Of peace on earth, good will to men.

Then from each black, accursed mouth,
The cannon thundered North and South,

And with the sound
The carols drowned

Of peace on earth, good will to men.

It was as if an earthquake rent
The hearthstones of a continent,

And made forlorn
The households born

Of peace on earth, good will to men.

And in despair I bowed my head;
"There is no peace on earth," I said;

"For hate is strong
And mocks the song

Of peace on earth, good will to men."

Then pealed the bells more loud and deep
" God is not dead, nor doth he sleep!

The Wrong shall fail,
The Right prevail,

With peace on earth, good will to men!"

~ Henry W. Longfellow


Reading with Expression, 1911, fifth grade

Printable version at Google Documents.

The Year of Surprises...

One more surprise before the year's end, a broken water pipe leading into the house from the street. I am so grateful to have water again - the clothes  and dish washer are busy catching up, and best of all, the toilets are flushing again! Our wallet is a little lighter, but it could always be worse.

Twas the Night Before Christmas...

'TWAS THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS

'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house

Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;

The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,

In hopes that Saint Nicholas soon would be there;

The children were nestled all snug in their beds,

While visions of sugarplums danced through their heads;

And mamma in her kerchief, and I in my cap,

Had just settled our brains for a long winter's nap,—

When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,

I sprang from the bed to see what was the matter.

Away to the window I flew like a flash,

Tore open the shutters, and threw up the sash;

The moon, on the breast of the new-fallen snow,
Gave a luster of midday to objects below;
When, what to my wondering eyes should appear
But a miniature sleigh and eight tiny reindeer,
With a little old driver, so lively and quick,
I knew in a moment it must be Saint Nick!

More rapid than eagles his coursers they came,

And he whistled and shouted and called them by name:

"Now Dasher! now Dancer! now Prancer! now Vixen!

On, Comet! on, Cupid! on, Donder and Blitzen!

To the top of the porch! to the top of the wall!

Now dash away, dash away, dash away all!"

As dry leaves that before the wild hurricane fly,
When they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky,
So, up to the housetop the coursers they flew,

With a sleigh full of toys,—and Saint Nicholas, too.
And then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roof
The prancing and pawing of each little hoof.
As I drew in my head and was turning around,
Down the chimney Saint Nicholas came with a bound.

He was dressed all in fur from his head to his foot,
And his clothes were all tarnished with ashes and soot;
A bundle of toys he had flung on his back,
And he looked like a peddler just opening his pack.
His eyes, how they twinkled! His dimples, how merry!
His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry;
His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow,
And the beard on his chin was as white as the snow;
The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth,
And the smoke, it encircled his head like a wreath.
He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf;
And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself.

A wink of his eye and a twist of his head
Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread.
He spake not a word, but went straight to his work,
And filled all the stockings; then turned with a jerk,
And, laying his finger aside of his nose,
And giving a nod,—up the chimney he rose.

He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle,
And away they all flew like the down of a thistle;
But I heard him exclaim, as he drove out of sight,

"merry Christmas To All, And To All A Good-night!"

Clement C. Moore

Copy and paste to your own document if you like. Free and in public domain at Google Books.

A Little Christmas Botany

Poinsettia Study:

From Botany: an elementary text for schools:

To examine gum-resin: Mount a little of the "milky" juice of the leaf stem of the garden poinsettia (Euphorbia pulcherrima). It is of a creamy consistency. Examination under the microscope shows that it is not white, as it seems to the naked eye. The particles are yellowish or colorless and are insoluble. These particles are gum resin. They have been emulsified by the plant, making the juice appear white.

398. CONTENTS NOT IN SOLUTION.—Starch is the most abundant of the solid products of the cell. Starch grains have a definite form for each group of plants, and groups can be determined by the form of their starch grains. Detection of adulteration of various products containing starch is accomplished by the aid of the microscope. In potato starch the grains are ovate, with a "nucleus" near one end, as shown in Fig. 391. In poinsettia they are dumbbell-shaped, with two nuclei (Fig. 391).

Books is free and in public domain at Google Books - downloadable, readable online, and printable.

Free Printable Children's Vintage Christmas Story

We read this story the other night and really enjoyed it. I found it in a public domain early 20th century teacher's periodical at Google Books. It is free to save and print.

Printable version: The Princess's Pearls - a young spoiled girl learns the true meaning of Christmas.

Vintage Santa Coloring Page

Image found in public domain at Google Books. Just click on image and save. This outline of Santa made a very nice coloring page.

Free Vintage Gift Tags

I'm learning GIMP, a free image editing software. Here are a few gift tags which I made with vintage public domain images. Click on images to enlarge and save.

From Saint Nicholas to Santa: The Origin of the American Tradition of Santa Claus

Washington Irving, creator "of such characters as Rip Van Winkle, Ichabod Crane, and the Headless Horseman...made a lasting contribution to the history of Christmas. In his fanciful history of New York City, Diedrich Knickerbocker Americanized the Dutch name from St. Nicholas into 'Santa Claus'. The name stuck, and Santa became an American institution."

Read more here,  The History of Christmas: Many of Our Traditions Began in the 19th Century.

A Few More Vintage Freebie Children's Christmas Cut and Pastes

All are from the early 20th century and  in public domain found at Google Books. Click on images to enlarge and save - candle, Christmas goose, and tree with ornaments.

Frugal Queen Takes the Train for the Holidays

Good for her Majesty as she sets a good example in these lean times!

According to the London papers, few seemed to notice the older woman boarding the 10.45am train from King’s Cross train station yesterday.
But the first-class passenger traveling to Norfolk, who did seem vaguely familiar, was, in fact, the Queen of England, setting off on her Christmas break to Sandringham. Her Majesty, 83, paid £44.40 (about $72) for her off-peak single ticket. For the record, she currently has an annual salary of £7.9 million (over $12 million). Read more here.

Twelve Years Ago Today...

by the grace of God, my son made his appearance into this world. Gone are the days of animal shaped birthday cakes. He requested a plain one layer cake with homemade light sugar icing, pizza, and a movie. So we are off to see The Christmas Carol at the theatre.

Rejoice! Rejoice! Immanuel

Listen(sing along) to midi here at cyberhymnal.org.  Lyrics:

1. O come, O come, Emmanuel,
And ransom captive Israel,
That mourns in lonely exile here
Until the Son of God appear.

Refrain
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.

2. O come, Thou Rod of Jesse, free
Thine own from Satan's tyranny;
From depths of hell Thy people save,
And give them victory o'er the grave.

Refrain

3. O come, Thou Day-Spring, come and cheer
Our spirits by Thine advent here;
Disperse the gloomy clouds of night
And death's dark shadows put to flight!

Refrain

4. O come, Thou Key of David, come,
And open wide our heavenly home;
Make safe the way that leads on high,
And close the path to misery.

Refrain

5. O come, O come, Thou Lord of Might,
Who to Thy tribes on Sinai's height
In ancient times didst give the law
In cloud, and majesty, and awe.

Refrain

So Let Us Plant Dates ...

What is hope?
It is the presentiment
that imagination is more real
and reality is less real
than it looks.

It is the hunch
that the overwhelming brutality of facts
that oppress and repress us
is not the last word.

It is the suspicion that reality is more complex
than the realists want us to believe -
that the frontiers of the possible
are not determined by the limits of the actual -
and in a miraculous and unexplained way,
life is opening up creative events
which will open the way
to freedom and resurrection.

But the two – suffering and hope –
must live from each other.
Suffering without hope
produces resentment and despair.
But, hope without suffering
creates illusions, naivete and drunkenness.

So let us plant dates -
even though we who plant them will never eat them.

We must live by the love of what we will never see.
That is the secret discipline.

It is the refusal to let our creative act
be dissolved by our need for immediate sense experience
and it is a struggled commitment
to the future of our grandchildren.

Such disciplined hope
is what has given prophets, revolutionaries and saints,
the courage to die for the future they envisage.
They make their own bodies
the seed of their highest hopes.

- Rubem Alves

Shared by Concord Pastor 

Prayer:
O Christ, living sign of the Father’s love, we adore You as the Center of our lives. You are our model for grace, truth, and living in the light of the Father. Be our strength in times of sorrow and trouble; be our joy in times of sadness; be our light in the darkness of sin and our troubled world. We are in awe of Your holy Presence. May we rejoice and share the signs of Your coming with one another. Amen. ~ O Antiphons

The More We Share

Micki at Holy Cards for Your Inspiration shared this card on her blog recently. It speaks volumes. Micki writes:


"The more we share
with those in need,
the greater our
Christmas celebration becomes."

Children's Acrostic Christmas Poem

C is for Christ Child who came to the earth.
H is for Heralds who told of His birth.
R is for Riches the wise men bring.
I is for Incense they offer the King.
S is for Star that showed them the way.
T is for Tribute the wise men pay.
M is for Manger, the dear Christ Child's bed.
A is for Angels who guarded its head.
S is for Shepherds who heard angels sing
Hosannas to Jesus, the new-born King.

Image and poem found at Google Books in public domain. Copy and print for yourself if you like.

Vintage Christmas Cut-out Freebie: Camel

"Color bridle royal purple and blanket royal purple with gold fringe.

The rockers and standard may be colored if desired. Cut rocker double.

Cut out and fasten in place indicated by A, B. Fold on dotted lines. Cut on heavy lines C for camel's feet."

Found at Google Books in public domain. Should be pasted to heavy paper or light cardboard. Click on image to enlarge and save.

This and That

Christmas cactus in full bloom

Formal living room that has turned into a preschool romper room...daughter has taken this over!




Son has taken over the den...mom has got? ; )

Tonight's dinner: Creole beans and tomato on rice.

Can You Hear Them?

(Crickets chirping)

Where is everyone? It's so quiet here. I miss my blog friends. : )

Please feel free to comment, especially if you think I might be able to help you with something regarding frugal living or homeschool.

Pressure-Cooker Kindergarten

" 'This[kindergarten] is a place of creativity and joy, but it’s a tenuous balance. “I try to mix the fun and the lessons,' Kenney says. “But we are testing them so much that I barely have time to teach the curriculum. These are 5- and 6-year-olds, and there is so little time for them to be kids.

...increasingly in schools across Massachusetts and the United States, little children are being asked to perform academic tasks, including test taking, that early childhood researchers agree are developmentally inappropriate, even potentially damaging. If children don’t meet certain requirements, they are deemed 'not proficient.' Frequently, children are screened for 'kindergarten readiness' even before school begins, and some are labeled inadequate before they walk through the door.

This is a troubling trend to an experienced educator like Gerzon, who knows how much a child can soak up in the right environment. After years of study and practice, she’ll tell you that 5-year-olds don’t learn by listening to a rote lesson, their bottoms on their chairs. They learn through experience. They learn through play. Yet there is a growing disconnect between what the research says is best for children -- a classroom free of pressure -- and what’s actually going on in schools.

...the bucolic world of wonder, a place for cookies and afternoon naps.That world is long gone."

Read more here, Pressure Cooker Kindergarten. HT to HSBA.

Not here at my house! Welcome to the school of yesteryear...Happy Hearts at Home Homeschool.

Make a Glittered Paper Butterfly Ornament

See here

Dollar Store Crafts

Bob the Tomato. Cute!